On Episode 296 of CrossFit Radio, host Justin Judkins interviewed two relatively new affiliate owners. Damian Nielson of Generator CrossFit is up first, and he’s followed by Kevin Houston, who owns CrossFit Autonomy. This episode was webcast on Sept. 18, 2013.

2:00 Three weeks ago, Damian Nielson opened the doors of Generator CrossFit. He spoke about getting his affiliate started and how he chose its location. He discussed what equipment he felt was essential immediately, how he plans to separate himself from the surrounding competition, how he’s financing his business and how he plans on building his membership.

13:16 Kevin Houston always wanted to have his own affiliate so Albany CrossFit owner Jason Ackerman showed him the ins and outs of the business. Houston explained that he doesn’t feel the market is saturated and literally looked on a map of affiliates to choose where he would open CrossFit Autonomy. To avoid competing with his mentor, he actually moved to another state to put up his shingle. Houston spoke about affiliate issues including word-of-mouth advertising, getting athletes moving correctly, monthly overhead costs and meeting his business goals.

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